With the increase in different types of devices communicating over networks to servers and other computing devices, usage of 3GPP LTE systems has increased. In particular, both typical user equipment (UE) such as cell phones and UEs using Machine Type Communication (MTC) currently use 3GPP LTE systems. MTC UEs may generally be non-user oriented, such as sensors installed in equipment. MTC UEs may pose a particular communication challenge due to small battery size and low power availability. In particular, there are a number of circumstances in which the network may wish to communicate with a UE to notify the UE of incoming data or modification of system information. To initiate communications with a UE in idle mode, the serving base station (enhanced Node B (eNB)) may page the UE by sending a paging message. Due to their nature, MTC UEs may have a number of different types of communication restrictions, including limitations for paging such as wake up times, response times and bandwidth. In these cases, MTC UEs may not be able to communicate with the serving eNB in a compatible manner to satisfy normal Radio Link Control (RLC) protocol requirements within the current 3GPP standard, Release 12 (3GPP TS 36.213). This may be particularly difficult in circumstances in which the MTC UEs are located in geographic areas buildings or isolated geographical areas with poor network coverage or in which poor signal conditions exist. However, while MTC UEs are an ever-growing percentage of communications in 3GPP networks, the effects on user-oriented non-MTC UEs may remain of importance when designing system changes in 3GPP networks.
It would be therefore desirable to enable the network to enable paging of MTC UEs such that restrictions on MTC UEs paging do not impact paging for non-MTC UEs.